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Luke 10:21 I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth,

KJV Verse:

Luk 10:21 I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.

Greek Verse:

Literal Alternative:

I confess myself to you, Father, master of sky and the earth. Because you have concealed these from skilled ones and educated ones and you have disclosed them to babies. Yes, [you are] the Father because, in this way, contentment has come into being in front of you.

Hidden Meaning:

This verse combines two verses from Matthew (Matthew 11:25, Matthew 11:26) with only one word different. The different word is a fancier and less common form of the word in Matthew, This more self-deprecating and humorous in the Greek than the KJV. Hardly a single word in the last short section is what it appears to be in the KJV. There is no Greek word for "seemed", "good", or "sight". However, a direct translated of this verse is more difficult to understand than the KJV.

In this verse, Christ is acknowledging his own silliness and sense of humor. This sense is largely lost in translation because some of the KJV seems intentionally misleading.

The problems start with the "I thank statement. The Greek word translated as "thank" really means "to confess", "to admit," and "to acknowledge." It is in the form where the subject is either being acted upon or acts on himself. Christ is confessing himself to God here, acknowledging something about himself. This verb is used only here and in parallel in Matthew.

The word translated as "lord" means "lord", "master of the house," and "head of the family."

The word translated as "of heaven" means sky, the climate, and the universe. It also meant the home of the gods in a physical sense: the sun, moon, and planets were named for the gods.

"Thou hast hid" is a Greek verb that means "to hide from", "to conceal from," and "to keep hidden from." It also means, interestingly, "to lose from sight." It has the same root as the common word meaning "to hide" used in Matthew. This form has a prefix meaning "from" on the front of it.

"Wise" is a Greek adjective that refers to those with experience and common sense. It has no article ("the") in front of it in the Greek.

"Prudent" is a word that refers more to learning and natural intelligence.

"Revealed" is a negative form of the word used earlier meaning "to cover" and "to hide "with an "away from." This reverses its meaning, so it means to uncover or reveal and, in the passive, "to become known. "

The word translated as "them" is the Greek word commonly translated as pronouns in English, but it has a few shades of meaning our pronouns do not have.

"Babes" is a noun that means "baby" or "infant" and, as an adjective that, when referring to understanding, means "childish" and "silly".

Hardly a single word in the short verse is what it appears to be in the KJV. However, the verse is difficult to understand.

"Even so" is a word that means "yes", "truly", "assuredly," and "even so." It is always an affirmative response.

The "Father" here is not Christ addressing his Father. The form isn't right. We saw that form earlier. Its form is that of the subject of the sentence. This is especially clear because the word is preceded by an article ("the") in English. There is no verb that we would normally associate with the subject so the sense is "the Father is" but since the Father is being addressed here, the sense is "[you are] the Father".

In the Greek source, "for" is a word here that means "that" or "because."

"So" is a Greek adverb that means "in this way" or "this is why."

"It seemed" is a Greek verb that means "to come into being", "to be produced," and "to come to pass." It is in a form where the subject of the sentence does this to itself of for itself. It means to enter into a new state. While at first, it looks like "the Father" is the subject here, but that doesn't work because God does not become, he only "is".

"Good" is a word that means "goodwill", "contentment", "an object of desire", "satisfaction," and "approval." We might simply say "happiness." this is the only time Christ uses this word. This word is also in the form of the subject of the sentence so this is what "the father becomes".

"In thy" is simply "of you," the possessive form of "you." This "you"

"Sight" is an adverb that means "before" in both place and time. Like our word, "before," it can mean "in front of," or "earlier in time" or "rank."

Wordplay:

The words translated as "revealed" is the negative form of the word translated as "hid" so "did not hide" is closer to the point. The word translated as "babes" means childish and silly when referring to understanding.

Note that this verse ends a series of verses condemning the areas that didn't believe in him. So Christ is actually making fun of himself for condemning them. This makes the previous verses seem more like humorously intended exaggerations than true condemnations.

κύριε (noun sg masc voc) "Lord" is from kyrios (kurios), which means "having power", "being in authority" and "being in possession of." It also means "lord", "master of the house," and "head of the family."

τοῦοὐρανοῦ (noun sg masc gen ) "Of Heaven" is from the Greek ouranos, which means "heaven as in the vault of the sky", "heaven as the seat of the gods", "the sky", "the universe," and "the climate."

καὶ (conj) "And" is from kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "but." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also," and "just."

τῆςγῆς, (noun sg fem gen) "Earth" is from ge, which means "the element of earth", "land (country)", "arable land", "the ground," and "the world" as the opposite of the sky. Like our English word "earth," it means both dirt and the planet.

ὅτι (adv/conj) "That" is from hoti, which introduces a statement of fact "with regard to the fact that", "seeing that," and acts as a causal adverb meaning "for what", "because", "since," and "wherefore."

ταῦτα (adj pl neut acc) "These things" is from tauta, which is a referring pronoun meaning "these", "this", "that," and "here." It can mean the nearer or the further depending on usage. As an adverb it can mean "therefore" and "that is why."

ἀπὸ (prep) "From" is from apo, a preposition of separation which means "from" or "away from" from when referring to place or motion, "from" or "after" when referring to time, "from" as an origin or cause.

σοφῶν (adj pl masc gen ) "The wise" is sophos, which means "skilled at practical matters", "clever," and "wise. The idea is those with experience and common sense.

καὶ (conj) "And" is from kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "but." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also," and "just."

συνετῶν, (adj pl masc gen) "Prudent" is sunetos, which means "intelligent", "sagacious," and "wise." Here, the idea is more learning and natural intelligence.

καὶ (conj) "And" is from kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "but." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also," and "just."

ἀπεκάλυψας (2nd sg aor ind act) "Revealed" is apokalupto, which means to "uncover", "disclose", "reveal," unmask", ""make bare."become known," in the middle passive, "reveal one's whole mind,"in the passive, "be made known," and as an adjective, "naked," and "shameless." It is the opposite of kaluptô, "to cover" and "to hide.

αὐτὰ (adj pl neut acc) "Them" is from autos, which means "the same," and the reflexive pronouns, "myself", "yourself", "himself", "herself", "itself," or the oblique case of the pronouns, "him", "her," and "it." It also means "one's true self," that is, "the soul" as opposed to the body and "of one's own accord."

νηπίοις: [uncommon](adj pl masc dat) "Babes" is nêpios, which means "child", "the young," and "infant." As an adjective referring to understanding, it means "childish", "silly," 'without foresight", "blind," and, to strength "like that of a child."​

ναί, [uncommon](adv) "Even so" is from nai (vai), which means "yea,""yes", "truly," and similar ideas.

ὅτι (adv/conj) "For" is from hoti, which introduces a statement of fact "with regard to the fact that", "seeing that," and acts as a causal adverb meaning "for what", "because", "since," and "wherefore."

οὕτως () "So" is houtos, which as an adjective means "this", "that", "the nearer." As an adverb, it means "in this way", "therefore", "so much", "to such an extent," and "that is why." -- "This" is translated from a Greek word that means "this", "that", "the nearer." -- The word translated in KJV as "thus" is in its adverbial form, so it means "in this manner" or "in this way."

ἐγένετο (3rd sg aor ind mid) "It seemed" is from ginomai, which means "to become", "to come into being", "to be produced," and "to be." It means changing into a new state of being. It is the complementary opposite of the verb "to be" (eimi)which indicates existence in the same state.

ἔμπροσθέν (adv) "Sight" is from emprosthen, which as an adverb means [of place]"in front of", "before", "forwards," [of time] "before", "of old," and as a preposition, "facing", "opposite", "in front," [of time] beforehand," and [of degree] "preferred before." It also denotes a ranking. -- The Greek word translated as "before" means "in front of" referring to place and when used to apply to time means "beforehand."